Improved aemoe foe ships-of-wae



NJETERS. PMOTO-LITHOGRAFMER. WASHINGTON, D. C.

laitth tates gatwt @Hire Le LJ enclosed within a skin or easing, as above described. The chill-cast dctlecting surfaces e a shown in figs. l 7

TIMOTHY WHITBY, O F YORK BO Al), LAMB ETH, ENGLAND.

lle/fers Patent No. 68,474, flater? September 3, 1867; patented z'iz Enf/Zand Auf/ust 29, 1866.

IMPROVBD ARMOR FOB SHIPS-OPINAR.

TO ALL TO WHOM IT MAY CONGERN:

Be it known that I, TIMOTHY WHITBY, of York Road, Lambeth, in the county7 of Surrey, England, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, have invented or discovered new and useful Improvements in Constructing Vessels-of-War and other structures required to bc rendered shotproof; and I, the said TIMOTHY WHITBY, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to bc particularlY described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof; that is to say- In constructing vcssclsof-war according to this invention, I attach armor plates to the exterior of those parts of the outer skin ofthe vessel that are required to be rendered shot-proof, and outside thc armor plating I attach metal plates formed into loops, or otherwise formed to present inclined or curved surfaces to projectiles, in order that the projectiles maybe deflected by these surfaces, and so turned out of their -course before striking against the armor plating. 'lhc projectiles will thus be prevented from strikingfairly against the armor plating, and therefore the armor plating will be better able to offer resistance to them. The curved plates are hy preference of steel, in order that when struck by a projectile they may act as springs and take away from the velocity ofthe projectile. A thin shin or plating is placed outside the curved or angular plates, to enclose them water-tight and form the exterior ofthe vessel. If desired, armor plating may he dispensed with, and the curved or other plates be alone employed to protect the outer skin ofthe vessel. 'lhc curved or angular plates are by preference secured in such a manner that they can readily be removed and replaced, If desired, two sets of curved plates may be employed, one exterior of the other.

Batteries, forts, and other structures desired to be rendered shot-proof may be protected in a similar manner to that above described. )urved met-'al plates may also be employed as a means of retaining cylindrical or other forms of chill-cast metal on the exterior of those parts of a ship that are to be rendered shot-proof, the hollows formed by thc-bends or curves in the metal plates being filled up by the chill-cast metal pieces, or chillcast metal pieces may bc otherwise enclosed or retained within a casing or plating of wrought metal on the exterior of a ship or vessel.

Having thus stated the nature of my invention, I will Vproceed to describe more fudly the manner of performing the same Description. of tlm Dra-wings.

Figure 1 shows a horizontal section,

Figure 2 a vertical section, and

Figure 3 a side view partly in section of a portion of the side of an iron ship or vessel protected with armor plating and dciiecting surfaces on the exterior thereof.

The dclecting surfaces shown in these figures are of chill-cast metal, but other forms of deilecting surface may be employed, such as curved plates of wroughtmctal, orplates of metal otherwise formed to present inclined or curved surfaces to projectiles may be applied exterior of the armor plating. The deflecting surfaces are a '-7 and 3, are composed of a series of chill-castings similar to chill-cast projectiles such as are now commonly manufacturcd for tiring from ordnance. These 'castings are connected one to another by short wrought-iron pieces I1, similar to short lengths of thc ordinary double-headed railway rail. These pieces are placed in the moulds in which the pieces a arc to be cast, and the pieces a are cast upon them in such manner as to form a kind of chain, in the manner represented in the drawing. A series of chains so formed is placed side by side over thc es'tcrior of the armor plating c of the vessel, and thc chains are enclosed within a skin or casing, c, of-iron, which forms an even ysurface and water-tight casing for the outer surface of the vessel. The chains are also held by means of the4 bolts d, as shown. In the dra-wing I have shown the sides of the vessel to which the armor plating is affixed to be composed of two parallel skins,ff, 'of iron plating, connected atintervals the ene to the other, but other forms or constructions of vessels kmay be similarly protected with detlccting surfaces on the exterior of armor plating.

Figure 4 is a vertical section, and v Figure 5 a side view partly in section et" a port-ieu of thc side of a vessel having no armor plating, but having deflecting surfaces applied to its exterior to protect it from shot, a skin or plating being according t0 my invention placed on the exterior of the deilecting surfaces, to enclose them and fol-1n the exterior of the vessel, as before described.' The deiiecting surfaces are composed of vcurved plates a a secured to the sides of the vessel by bolts I), but other forms of deilecting surface may be employed, and exterior of these dei'leeting surfaces is the skin or plating e, to form an even surface on the exterior of the yvessel. rlhe spaces bctweerthe plates are shown to be filled in with chill-cast blocks of metal similar to ehill-cast projectiles such as are non commonly employed for tiring from ordnance.

Figure 6 is a vertical section, and

Figure 7 a side View partly in section ot' a portion of the side et' a vessel protected by other forms of deflecting surfaces. The deilecting surfaces in this arrangement arel composed of curved or looped metal plating a, secured to .the sides of the vessel by bolts b, as shown. Exterior of these deilecting surfaces is the skin 0r plating e, to form an even surface to the exterior of the vessel. The intcrstices between the bends or loops of the dcileeting plates may, as in the arrangement shown in figs. l and 5, be filled in with chill-east blocks d.

Having thus described the nature of my invention, and the manner of performing the same, I wouldhave it understood that what I claim, isi The protecting those parts of v'essels and other structures that are required-to be rendered shot-proof, by the combination of an exterior casing of chill-cast metal blocks and wrought plating, the plating being employed to enclose and retain the cliill-cast pieces, as herein described.

TIMOTHY WHITBY.

Witnesses:

G. F. WARREN, Tiros. BROWN, 

